Pipe-wrench



(No Model.)

P. VIRGIEN.

PIPE WRENGH.

No. 426,223. Patented Apr. 22, 1890.

i l l jfi i 1C UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRIEDRICH VIRGIEN, OF YONKERS, NEW YORK.

PIPE-WRENCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 426,223, dated April22, 1890.

Application filed April 19, 1889. Renewed March 8, 1890. Serial No,343,177. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRIEDRICH VIRGIEN, of Yonkers, in the county of\Vestchester and State of New York, a citizen of the United States, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Piperenches, of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved pipewrench which can be readilyadjusted for any size of pipe, and which can take hold of the pipe witha firm grip and be instantly detached from the same when the wrench isto be removed; and the invention consists of a pipe-wrench whichcomprises a main shank having a jaw at its end, a straight side and arack at the opposite side, and a movable jaw, the shank of which ispivoted to a guide-frame that is guided on the main shank, saidguide'frame being provided at one side with a spring-actuatedhandlepiece and at the other side with an interiorlytoothed section thatengages the rack of the main shank. toothed section of the frame intothe rack is applied to a transverse pin of the guide-frame and to theinner end of the movable jaw, and provided at its middle portion with aU- shaped bend that rests ona movable T-piece that slides along thestraight side of the main shank, as will be fully described hereinafter,and finally pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a side elevation,partly in vertical longitudinal section, through the guide-frame of myimproved pipe vrench. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken on line a m,Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is avertical transverse section on line 7 y, Fig. 1. Fi 4 is aside elevation of my improved wrench made for use as a pocket wrench,and Figs. 5 and 6 are details of a p1voted spring-actuated jaw at theend of the The spring that applies the side and provided with a rack aat the opposite side, and is provided at the middle part near the rackwith depressions a, so as to permit the better taking hold of the mainshank A by the fingers ot' the hand.

The guide-frame C is provided at one side with extensions 0, which areconnected bya transverse pin 0 and that serves as a thumb rest formoving the guide-frame C. The 0pposite part of the guide-frame O isprovided with a toothed section Z), which engages the rack to when theguide-frame is not lifted away from the main shank A. The inner angularor curved end of the movable jaw 13 rests against a transverse pin (Z ofthe guideframe 0 and is acted upon by a spring D, fastened on thetransverse pin of the guide frame C, or resting against said pin andbearing on the main shank A, as shown in Fig. 4. The middle part of thespring D is provided with a U-shaped bond that rests 011 a T- shapedmovable bearing E, which is carried along with the guide-fran1e (3 whenthe same is moved. along the main shank A. The spring D serves to keepthe toothed section b of the guide-frame in mesh with the rack a. Bypressing on the thumlrrestin the inverse direction of the arrow 00, andthereby moving the guide-frame O against the tension of the spring I),the toothed section b is released from the rack a, thus permitting theguide frame C to be adjusted on the main shank A. The movable jaw B isthus moved nearer to or farther away from the end of the stationary jawA, according to the size of the pipe to be gripped. As soon as thewrench is adjusted to the pipe the pressure on the thumb-rest of theguide-' frame is relaxed, so that the toothed section b interlocks withthe rack (I of the main shank A.

In place of a stationary jaw at the end of the main shank A, the end ofthe main shank maybe recessed and provided with a pivoted andspring-actuated jaw A, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6. This construction ofthe jaw on the main shank facilitates to some extent the removal of thepipe-wrench from the pipe, as the grip of the jaws is released as soonas the wrench is turned in opposite direction to the gripping directionof the same.

The pipe-wrench can be quickly and effectively applied to pipes ofdifferent sizes and can be manufactured at a comparatively low price, itbeing also adapted to be made on a smaller scale and used as a pocketpipe- Wrench, as shown in Fig. 4.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent The combination of a main shank provided With a jaw atthe outer end and having a smooth side and a rack at the opposite side,a guide-frame embracing said main -shank and provided with a thumb-restat one side and a toothed section at the opposite side for engaging therack of the main shank, a 1nov-

